New Delhi: A Delhi fast-track court on Monday turned down a request by three accused in the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak scandal to be subjected to polygraph, brain-mapping and lie-detector examinations, while putting off its decision on whether to take cognizance of the CBI’s sprawling chargesheet.
Special Judge (Fast Track Court) Ajay Gupta, sitting at the Rouse Avenue Court, rejected the application moved by Mangilal Biwal, Vikas Biwal and Dinesh Biwal, who had sought court directions for conducting the tests on them.
The trio had contended that allowing polygraph and related examinations would help ensure a “fair and transparent investigation” and underlined that a fair investigation and fair trial are rights guaranteed to the accused under Article 21 of the Constitution, as submitted by their counsel, advocate A P Singh.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), however, strongly opposed the move. Senior Public Prosecutor V K Pathak told the court that the application was not maintainable and even sought costs against the accused, pointing out that the government had already constituted a special fast-track court to deal with the case and that the investigation had reached the chargesheet stage, as reported by The Economic Times.
Cognizance Order Deferred
The court kept its order on taking cognizance of the CBI charge sheet pending, explaining that the order was being dictated but could not be completed as the record was voluminous.
Accordingly, the pronouncement on cognizance has been scheduled for August 12. The judicial custody of the accused was also extended till August 12, with the accused persons appearing before the court through video conferencing.
Massive Chargesheet Details
The CBI has submitted a voluminous chargesheet running into nearly 20,000 pages against 13 people accused in the alleged NEET-UG 2026 question paper leak and examination irregularities case.
The probe agency has relied on the statements of 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 seized articles to support its case.
The investigation began after the Department of Higher Education approached the CBI on May 12, nine days after the examination was held on May 3. An FIR was registered the same day, following which the agency deployed several teams comprising 72 personnel and eight cyber-forensic specialists.
The CBI subsequently carried out searches at 92 premises across Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and other states. Investigators seized electronic devices, communication equipment and documents during the searches, which were later examined as part of the probe.
Arrests, Charges And Money Trail
The CBI’s first arrest in the case was made on May 13, and the number of accused in custody has since risen to 13. Among them are three NTA-appointed experts handling biology, chemistry and physics, besides alleged intermediaries who sourced the leaked questions and circulated them to prospective beneficiaries.
The arrested persons also include two individuals linked to coaching centres. To trace the suspected proceeds of the alleged leak, the agency has frozen multiple bank accounts, lockers and a demat account.
